From the Los Angeles Times
November 3, 2002
Read more at the link:
During WWII, the City Braced for a Japanese Invasion During WWII, the City Braced
for a Japanese Invasion
-----
A shallow bluff-top trench covered with ice plant overlooks the coastline and marks the spot where infantrymen once guarded Los Angeles Harbor against a Japanese invasion. Ft. MacArthur, now the centerpiece of Angels Gate Park, was the "Guardian of Los Angeles," the coast's first line of defense from 1914 through 1982.
More than half a century ago, these peaceful hills bristled with 30,000 soldiers, 5,000 feet of tunnels, gun crews, machine-gunners and aircraft spotters. The fort, one of nine along the California coast, was named for Civil War hero Lt. Gen. Arthur MacArthur, father of Gen. Douglas MacArthur.
Today, it's a reminder of World War II's profound effect on the Pacific Coast, as well as evidence that today's anxieties about terrorism are nothing new. Back then, people on this side of the ocean lived in fear. Newspaper stories asked readers to heed blackouts, prepare for air raids and learn to extinguish incendiary bombs.
Before Pearl Harbor, no one dreamed that Ft. MacArthur -- the only fort in the nation with 14-inch disappearing gun batteries -- would actually be called upon to defend the harbor. But after Dec. 7, 1941, nine Japanese submarines moved east to target merchant ships off the Pacific Coast.